students actually paid by the chinese embassy to show up in big numbers to say hello. >> good to watch you read. massive explosion, gas explosion killing at least one and leaving others in critical condition. stay right here for all the details. "fox & friends" starts right now. >> nice shoes. gretchen, more on that later. >> yes, oh my goodness. >> brian, so uncharacteristic of you to notice my shoes. >> one time you wore them actually. >> that was a little bit different. >> i have a picture to prove it. >> maybe it's health care repeal outfit day. >> really? you think so? >> i need to be snazy for? is it a pre-existing condition that i need shoes? >> not sure if you'll be covered or not. >> or is it because it's as simple as black and white?

>> there we go. there's the connection. >> indeed. later on today, the republicans as they promised during the campaign will go ahead and vote in the u.s. house to repeal barack obama's health care reform bill. then what they're gonna do later on is figure out how to replace it. they know there's a lot of parts of it that don't work. there are some parts they do like. they have to figure out a plan. >> so, let's hear from paul ryan. he's one of those young gun guys. he's a conservative from wisconsin who is considered the up and comer in the republican party. here's what he had to say. >> we're here because we heard the american people in the last election. we are here because we believe it's really important to do in office what you said you would do. we said we would have a straight up or down voted to repeal this health care law and that's precisely what we're doing here today. >> the most vociferous against

was congressman weiner who is going to be paying for everybody that needs emergency care instead of going to a doctor. a representative also weighed in out of california against the repeal. >> we wouldn't use the institution of government, the congress of the united states to simply fulfill campaign promises if we're not going to actually try to make real law, it's a very extensive proposition to use the institution of the united states house of representatives simply to send a political message. i would hope that our efforts are always to make good law because every single day we're here is costing the taxpayers a pretty penny so i don't think they asked us to come here to spin our wheels or send political messages. >> the republicans promised during the campaign they would bring this up for an up or down

vote. later on today, they will do the same. >> here's why the democrats don't want that to happen. many of them will be put on the spot today to vote. some of them come from conservative districts and let's not forget what it's all about, re-election. so that's probably why a lot of the democrats don't want this to come to fruition and, in fact, eric cantor is taunting harry reid in the senate, if you will, to actually bring it to a vote for those exact reasons. >> the president surprised many by saying you know what? i'm open to tweaking the health care plan. he went on today in a statement saying yesterday, rather, saying i'm willing and eager to work with both democrats and republicans to improve the affordable care act but we cannot go backwards. americans need the presence of security and knowing they won't drop their coverage when they need it most. chris van holland says something similar saying insurance companies could be popping

champagne bottles when they see this vote. they might have a chance for survival. insurance companies, many think they're the enemy. others say they would like the opportunity to compete in the free market and might not be able to if things continue. >> why is president obama doing this? we talked about this. >> why is he coming to middle? >> of course, you know, it's because of his reflection efforts as well. he is looking at the polls and seeing a majority of americans don't like this health care bill and don't still. so he now has to give that sort of tone, i think, that he's willing to compromise because he wants to be reelected. >> there's an item in "the washington post" saying the democrats and republicans didn't vote yesterday whether or not to repeal this, the tone had changed. louie gomert, a texas republican say the debate has not changed but the tone has changed. if you listen carefully, there was no talk about death penalties or holocaust of uninsured americans. eric cantor said the republicans were not given any instructions

on the language they could or could not use and yet, yesterday, it was civil. >> yep. one other quick reason why the president might be changing his tune. six more states joined the state of florida in suing to being unconstitutional. that doesn't look so good if the president's part of the bill is overturned eventually by the supreme court. >> that would mandate health care for everybody. i have up to 26 states now who are saying i'm going to sue so i don't have to play by the insurance game. meanwhile at 5 minutes after the hour, let's change gears. a day of pomp and circumstance in d.c. as president obama meets with china's president underlying the seriousness of the u.s.-chinese relationship. hey, 13 years since the big state dinner and it's finally going to happen. peter doocy joins us live from washington. how is it going so far? >> well, brian, yesterday, president hu landed at andrews air force base in his air china 747 he got a ride to the white

house by vice president biden and at the white house, he had a very private dinner with president obama and secretary of state clinton in the old family dining room in the residence. it was completely off-limits to the press and there weren't even any note takers there and so we don't have a readout or anything in the talking points and the administration is hoping that the small crowd encouraged a more candid conversation. as you just said, supper will be at the white house again tonight. there will be a state dinner, first one we've had for china in 13 years and we've seen some very prominent chinese americans on the guest list including jackie chan but before any of that kicks out, hu is going to meet directly with obama today and they're expected to talk about china's national security and their currency and their human rights record which has already been the subject of protests. there were hundreds of free tibet and pro democracy activists outside the white house yesterday. and today, the two presidents are also going to have a joint press conference and meet up with some chinese and u.s. ceo's

of companies like microsoft, boeing and g.e. when he's done here in d.c. hu is going to go to chicago. brian? >> thanks, peter. during state dinner, they might want to come up and say, are you done hacking into our computers? it's kind of bugging us. you know that f-22 prototype that you made, it looks like exactly the one we made. we're pretty sure you took it. jennifer griffin said yesterday, you know what? in the pentagon, they're pretty sure they took it. >> it's the number one thing, complaint on the list is the theft of intellectual property. we know that the pentagon alone is hacked into hundreds of times a day. mostly from china. >> hello! >> how about taking some of those experts and hacking and helping us with wikileaks? >> that would be good. >> if we're going to talk about coming together in compromise, that's one idea that i have. in the meantime, you want to earn 80 bucks? you can if you're a student. i think you have to be chinese. chinese heritage maybe.

the chinese embassy will pay you 80 bucks if you'll give a couple of slags and stand on the sidelines as president hu jintao drives through today and show how much you love china. >> what's interesting about this, we're not supposed to know those people are getting paid. apparently the chinese embassy put up some bulletin boards and sent out some e-mails and said listen, how would i like to make this money? what's interesting about it, whenever hu gets in the motorcade, wave a banner or flag or something like that, cheer. apparently one of the instructions is if somebody like a reporter or journalist asks you why you're here, say you spontaneously decided to show up and you're paying all your own costs. even though that's not true, chinese embassy trying to put on a big show. >> how do we know that? one of the reporters called up and said i'm from george mason university only i'm from china, can i take part in this?

$80. here's the instructions. you get refreshments and work in shifts and nice scene outside of the embassy. >> what they're trying to do and peter mentioned there were some protesters yesterday. they're trying to camp that down. they want the boss to think they love him in america. >> we'll see how that pans out today. in the mean time, the rest of the headlines. we begin with that deadly gas explosion. saw the video a few minutes ago. the exact moment it happened caught on camera. unfortunately, one person was killed. five people hurt when the gas leak sparked an enormous blast in a neighborhood in philly. the blast rocked two homes and they all went up in flames. >> came on in and said that's -- there's no way it's free. and i saw the flame hit the size. it was that bad. >> dozens of people forced from

their homes including 24 people from a senior citizens home. it could have sprayed shrapnel at marchers in a dr. martin luther king jr. parade. f.b.i. says a backpack found along the parade route in spokane, washington contained explosive materials and a remote detonator. the feds calling this a case of domestic terrorism. the police department diffused the bomb before it started. no arrests have been made. after five terms, connecticut senator joe lieberman will announce his retirement today. it will be effective at the end of his term next year. the democrat turned i understand pe -- independent was an outspoken supporter of john mccain. he lost the democratic primary in 2006. funeral arrangements under way today for robert sergeant shriver. the brother-in-law of president john f. kennedy and senator ted kennedy passed away after an eight-year fight of alzheimer's disease. he founded the peace corps and

headed the special olympics and head start program. he was a democratic vice presidential candidate in 19922 working tirelessly to help the poor. >> joining a common cause but all countries to eradicate poverty and materialism. >> shriver is survived by four sons and his daughter maria shriver. sergeant shriver was 95 years old. and those are your headlines. >> all right. >> all right. coming up straight ahead, can republicans really repeal health care today or are they just making a statement in the house? why some warn not to underestimate the power of the election message. our political panel next. >> steaming towards the studio. then guns like these could be going straight from the store to a classroom near you. do you think that's a good idea? we'll talk about it. >> there was one really awkward moment when the chinese president met president obama's young daughters and asked him what factory do you kids work at?

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>> hey, the house is set to vote on repealing the health care law. house care majority leader eric cantor telling the white house to bring it on. confident the repeal effort isn't going anywhere. >> i would share the belief of many including, i think, enunciated by those who are going to vote for repeal tomorrow, this isn't a serious legislative effort. i don't think it's going anywhere. >> well, so are democrats underestimating republicans or right on target? with us right now, new york daily news columnist and senior writer for "the daily caller" democratic strategist robert zimmerman is here in the middle

and americans for prosperity, tim phillips. robert, do you think democrats are right in blowing off the republican efforts today? >> i don't think it's about blowing off the effort. i think it's really a missed opportunity by the republicans. you know, i think more could be done with this legislation on tort reform or selling insurance across state lines or for that matter, more public access and more assistance for small businesses but every time the republican conservative leadership is put to the test, they -- they walk away from it. for example, during the bush years, they control the house and the senate and the presidency for five years. they never moved on tort reform. >> i know what you're saying. let's keep it from right now. in particular, those issues were brought up and blown off because the republicans really had no power. >> that's exactly right and i think the president ignores what's going to happen today at his own peril. we saw what happened on november 2nd. the american people is trying to speak to this administration. you've gone too far. come back. come back to where we are. >> right. so here's the problem. make a statement but it's all

symbolic. in the senate, they're not even going to bring it up. >> it's not symbolic. here's why. for all the scoffing at the idea of repealing obama care, on the left and the insistence from them that obama care is the end, this has been hugely successful already. one, we're still talking about it. this is the law of the land and we're still having a public debate. two, you saw democrats pivot. carolyn malony, chuck schumer on the sunday talk shows this past weekend were saying we need to repeal parts of this law. that's astonishing. >> here's eric cantor playing the role of rex ryan, calling out senator harry reid. says if harry reid is so confident the repeal vote should die in the senate, he should bring it up for a vote. if he's so confident, he's got the votes. so then it isn't spinning your wheels if the senate picks it up. >> it's not about spinning your wheels and you mentioned before that the republicans had no power. >> the problem is they have no plan. in fact, paul ryan had the most comprehensive plan as the chairman of the house budget committee and he only had 14

republicans supporting him so i think the real challenge here is for the republicans to show what they want to do about people with pre-existing conditions. and about people who might lose insurance because of illness. >> harry reid can say i'm not going to have this vote. there are a lot of u.s. democrats up in 2012 including my senator, jim well who will look at this, know they're in trouble politically and going to demand a vote. this is not symbolic. >> you know, i was selected to read the screen of president obama who seems to be moving saying i'm open to tweaking this. maybe he understands the 26 states who are charging -- who are challenging this constitutionally. >> yeah, well, i think as gretchen mentioned earlier, everyone is up for re-election in 2012 that matters so i think everyone is looking at this with that in mind. the president included. he knows he has to do something about the fact that polling suggests the majority of this country is not in love with this law. >> but the polling also shows that the anger towards his bill is subsiding. only 30% in most recent a.p. poll want to see this bill

repealed. they are out of touch with the mainstream. >> the a.p. poll was an outliar. >> 75%. that's right. >> most of the polls that matter are the ones that touch registered voters only. >> what i want to do since you did so well, we're going to come out for another segment, is that all right? we're going to change outfits and one of you will be wearing a.c.'s glasses. >> straight ahead, the president is starting to sound a little bit like a republican by cracking down on overregulation. is he leaving the liberal base behind and moving to the middle? and should you be banned from smoking if your neighbor thinks it stinks? the multimillion dollar battle headed to the supreme court. could it set a precedent for the rest of the nation? >> we've got a flood. hits the road, the nose the angels start second guessing where they tread. [ female announcer ] there's complete.

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>> fox news alert for you right now.

12 people now confirmed dead. another 52 hurt after a homicide bomber blew up an ambulance this morning in iraq. it happened at the iraqi police compound. prosecutors in haiti meantime have indicted former dictator on corruption charges. he made a surprise return to the troubled nation yesterday after 15 years in exile. he claims he wants to help haiti recover from last year's devastating earthquake. interesting development. brian? > >> yesterday, president obama signing an executive order reviewing the regulatory system. he's hoping it will ease business regulations and spur job creation. however, republicans were voicing similar proposals throughout the economic crisis. so is the president beginning to distance himself from his base going to the middle? is he leaning actually right? our political panel here to weigh in. let's start with you. what do you think of the president's editorial yesterday saying some of these are just dumb? >> i liked it. it was tough talk. it was straight talk.

it wasn't the kind of rhetoric we're used to seeing from obama that ends up somewhere in the ether and nowhere. so i liked it! i think he's got to find favor again with the financial sector and he knows that. he knows about 2012. i wish this was an admission that his policies were wrong. but, unfortunately, i think this is really just politicking. >> right, if you wanted to believe the president has come to the middle, robert, what would you like to see? >> we appreciate the new rhetoric. he can go to his own environmental protection agency, the e.p.a. where they're going in and trying to push cap and trade through, going to drive up utility prices, gas prices, hurt jobs and he could say guys, that's it. we're done with this regulatory effort to oversee co-2. it's wrong and misguided. let's reign it in and create jobs. >> from what you're reading and from what you're seeing, do you notice the president attacking a different direction? >> clearly, the administration is going into the next two years and facing new challenge, taking a different approach but not in this case. this program was initiated in

january 30th of 2009 in the federal register when it began this process so i don't want to disillusion tim or essy, democratic liberals believe in economic growth and doesn't believe in bureaucracy that's overlapping businesses. >> that's why the businesses know that. they don't trust what happened. >> you're no question, you're right. there's $2 trillion of private sector money waiting for a clear message on regulatory reform. president is providing it and we're providing growth in the private sector. >> this is not new information for you, you know the president met with a bunch of business leaders in the office and said how can we make this better? also, reached out to the chamber of commerce. >> right. >> this is real moves. >> it's a pivot, again, and i think in addition to what tim is saying, the policies have been hostile to business. rhetoric has been hostile to business. the rhetoric thus far has been very anti-business. they're fat cats. they're bloated. they're corrupt. you're going to see a real change over the next two years because he has to. >> but yet, we're also seeing tremendous success through the

tarp program which is initiated by the bush administration. and the success of the automotive bailout so this president has done a great deal to create private sector growth and try to rebuild this economy. >> success is a relevant term. >> when he basically took over general motors, that was the beginning of his numbers dropping and american people going holy cow, this is 50% approval rating. >> over where we are. >> he's now a 54% approval rating. >> away from the left. come on. >> neither one said marxist or socialist. >> new tone! new tone! >> for a marxist. >> you learned about that, right? >> are you ok? >> you all did extremely well. great debate and interesting shifting the entire conversation has taken over the last three months since the november election. good job. >> hey, gretchen, tell me what you have mran you have planned. >> shower off?

that's what it said in the prompter. >> there's no stopping these cars one after another shooting down the icy hill. wait until you see the rest of the tape. it went on for hours! >> yep. and -- >> how do you feel about teachers packing heat? new talk of bringing guns into the classrooms to keep our children safe. >> ok. now, sir, here's the part that you were supposed to read. >> that's right, yes. >> you want me to read it? >> plus american auto unions now unveiling plans to unionize foreign automakers as well. a good idea? or a secret plan to save their own pensions? stuart varney with more next. >> i like the way you talk about yourself in the third person. and happy birthday to dolly parton, the country music superstar is 65 years old today. >> no way! she is not 65! ok guys, how's the family gonna use less? i'm gonna use less honey.

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>> welcome aboard on this wednesday morning. talk more about this. tragically a while back in nebraska there was a kid, a 17-year-old was killed a vice principal and shot a principal before he killed himself. and some had said if somebody

would have been armed in that school, perhaps they could have stopped that. well, now, there is a lawmaker in nebraska who intends to do that. >> senator mark christianson says he's always been in favor of being able to have handguns in schools for teachers or security guards on duty there. he's proposing the new legislation, apparently, currently, many schools, i guess, don't let security officers carry guns. >> in new york city, they have metal detectors so they're making sure the kids aren't packing and they just said in nebraska, i guess it's different. it's a good question i think and highly debatable. the state senator has put forward this bill in nebraska after what happened with the 17-year-old student taking his own life and killing others, would you support a bill like this in your state? allowing teachers and maybe the

principals and executives to carry these? >> when you think about it, it kind of goes on the heels when the department of homeland security and the faa allowed some pilots to carry guns on board planes. but then again, a lot of pilots are former military and they've been trained in that kind of stuff. >> where does that stand right now? i often think about that when i get on the airplane. >> guys have guns! >> you notice where they still have you can't approach the cockpit as one comes out to use the rest room. are they packing? >> some of them. we don't know how many and we don't know how many air marshalls they are. we don't know what's going on in there. >> numbers wise. >> i felt safe because they took my wife's gel away. so as soon as her gel -- they took away her gel. because they -- >> they're still taking away our liquids! >> obviously, it was over 4 ounces. did she take a half gallon jug? >> what do you think? e-mail us. should they start allowing teachers, administrators, security members of teams at

schools to carry guns? friends at foxnews.com. >> now the rest of the headlines starting with steve. >> that's right, brian. speaking of students, two students recovering from being shot when a gun accidentally went off inside a student's backpack in their high school. you saw this develop yesterday. live on the fox newschannel. it happened at gardenia high school south of los angeles. one victim, a boy was shot in the neck. he's expected to be ok. female victim suffered a skull fracture from the bullet. she is still unconscious. the student who brought the gun to school illegally in custody right now. >> well, in a new interview, sna astronaut mark kelly suggests he does not want her to return to congress after she recovers from being shot. >> tough decision, probably not. but i know that's probably not going to matter to her. i think she's such a devoted public servant that she's going to come out of this and be more

resolved to fix things or to make things better for people. >> investigators also released a short description of the still unreleased surveillance tape showing giffords being shot from three feet away. an investigator describes the footage as five seconds of horror. it also reportedly shows judge john roll jumping on top of a giffords staffer and saving his life. the judge pictured here with giffords lost his life. brian? >> probably not going to release that tape until after the trial. the makers of tylenol say certain recalled products are safe even though they were made in a dirty factory. the new consumer health care is voluntarily recalling the products because they were made in a plant in pennsylvania. that plant now closed for insufficient cleaning procedures. the company says the recall involving tylenol arthritis and benadryl is just a precaution and consumers don't need to take any action. >> larry king says he's ready to come out of retirement to fill in for regis philbin? but just for a few weeks.

this after regis announced he's calling it quits. >> this will be my last year on this show. >> wow! > >> regis will end his 28-year run as the co-host of "live". regis replacement rumors are in overdrive. rumored to be the permanent replacement, kelly ripa's husband and ryan seacrest and whole bunch of other people. >> didn't they ask him if he was interested? >> he said no. >> he likes doing it with his wife. >> i mean, he likes -- he likes hosting with his wife. >> yes, he does. >> he didn't feel comfortable with other people. >> that would be with his wife. >> yeah, that would help. >> confused me on two fronts, the first phrase and then the second. >> yes. ok. >> anyway, who would be a good replacement host? e-mail us at friends at foxnews.com. slipping and sliding but pittsburgh may have had the worst of it with icy streets. look at this. one car slid into another.

i know. >> another driver said it took 35 minutes to travel 30 feet to the corner of his block. i saw this on the news last night and while the camera guy was filming over 10 cars went sliding down that hill. too bad somebody just didn't go to the top of the hill and say don't drive down it. paramedics answered 30 calls for slip and falls but while claims adjustors will have their hands full, none of the injuries thankfully are serious. oh, my goodness. >> all right. let's go over to brian because i think -- oh, no. >> take a look at the maps real fast. we have some storms all the way from mid atlantic. they have moved for the most part through the northern part of florida. balance of the country, for the most part is nice and dry. snow activity in portions of the central plain states. it is cold today throughout the northern plains. just 6 in minneapolis. 17 in chicago. 18 in kansas city. here in the northeast, it feels like practically spring is

around the corner. 36 in new york city. much better than yesterday as the same hour. later on today, things will warm up. about 40 here in the big town. raleigh, north carolina, about 60. about 54 atlanta. stuck in the 20's through the central plains, northern plains, single digits. all right. mr. kilmeade, over to you. >> thank you for that. hey, starting with college hoops, let's share it with you. with seconds left, the volunteers tobias harris can't get the jumper to go. brian williams somehow comes up with the rebound and the putback for the win. take a close look. tennessee wins 59-57, another reason to celebrate down south. stop me if you've done this before. but don't stop me because you've heard this before. things keep getting worse for bret favre. he filed his retirement papers and was hit with another claim of inappropriate text messages with a massage therapist. this is different! this time, it was with the vikings and after the other stuff broke.

according to deadspin.com, stephanie doosenbury, a masseuse that has worked with vikings players and now on her own claims favre sent her sexual text messages last september after embarrassing revelations with the jets. she contacted police on how to handle it and then went to vikings manager and by the way, didn't stop for her, too. backup running back young inquired about a massage and sent her naked pictures of herself there. incredible. we should take the phones away, ok? from all players for a while. 30 nfl players heading to the capital of washington today to take a photo on the house steps before meeting with lawmakers. why the meeting? to appeal to them to help avoid a player lockout on march 3rd. the nfl owners just wrapped up an owners meeting with the commissioner who is seeing the tv ratings soar by far the most popular sport in the country but still, they're talking strike. no strike from 9:00 to noon on

kilmeade and friends. dana perino will join us, bill and martha in the third. talk about friends, we have one with us. >> the president of the uaw says the unions won't survive in the long run if it can't organize foreign automakers. this is big. is it because they've already bled the other carmakers dry so they need to move on to the foreigners? well, stu varney is here. >> that's called the perjorative, i think, bled them dry. no, i can't. the uaw now wants to try to get in on the foreign workers. >> they're desperate. the guy that runs the uaw these days, used to be a household name of the uaw, not any longer because they've shrunk so much. they are desperate. if he says -- bob king says addressing a closed door meeting, he says if we can't organize some of these foreign carp plants that work in america, we have no future. the uaw is it finished. long term, out of business, if we can't organize these new guys on the block. >> yeah, and apparently, they've

asked the foreign carmakers to agree to a set of principles to allow for what it calls fair bargaining and apparently, they haven't heard from the foreign carmakers like toyota and honda and stuff like that and they say if they don't within 90 days, they will set a target. obviously they will have uaw guys with big signs complaining of unfair wages. >> they're not going to get what they want. these foreign automakers in america will not organize under the uaw. >> the reason is cost because they can produce cars at a fraction of the cost. >> but it's the workers themselves who almost certainly do not want to be paying dues to the uaw and they don't want to go down the same road that ford, chrysler and general motors went down with the uaw representing their work force. it's not going to happen. what the uaw wants really is car, they're not going to get that but they're going to look

for the obama administration for help getting into the foreign carmakers. >> and that could be where you bring in the lawyers and get very complicated, you don't know what kind of leverage the administration could put forward. could you do me a favor? would you follow this story? >> if you're -- >> if i pay you, i know. i'll pay you to follow the story. >> yes. >> petty cash, it's fine. >> could we pay you to find out what's coming up on your show? >> i should tell you without cost. >> ok. >> congresswoman loretta sanchez, democrat, california, i'm going to ask her, would you accept -- will you ask for a bailout for california? >> oh, my gosh. >> excellent. i bet she'd like to. >> no kidding. >> i don't want to be perjorative or prejudge what she's going to say. >> it wouldn't be prudent. thank you, sir. straight ahead, how can we help curb rising health care costs? forget the government takeover. one community says they have a better way. and it's already working there. you'll hear it. >> while most people are shovelling snow, these folks are removing sand? what the heck happened to this neighborhood? >> and stick around, we have a great line-up of guests. legendary boxing promoter don

king might turn steve pro today. dave ramsey will be joining us. he's smart and has a lot of money. wisconsin governor is here, doing a great job in his state. how is he doing it? senator pat toomey has a way of analyzing the debt ceiling and the hilarious and always young betty white joins us, good news about her new series. ugh, my sinuses... the congestion... it's your fault. naturally, blame the mucus.

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the smell of sving cream. whatever scents fill your household, purina tidy cats scoop helps neutralize odors in multiple cat homes... giving you just what you need to keep your house smelling like it should. purina tidy cats scoop. keep your home smelling like home. >> now some of the quick headlines. now you can buy a grand vanilla latte or i should say a grande. i should know. i go there enough with your cell phone. i just saw lauren who just wrote that and can't believe i screwed that up. your cell phone allows starbucks users to buy a cup of joe. it acts like a debit card. nearly 7,000 stores across the country. another way to burn your money. and for rent, a cheap -- if you

want to rent a cheap beachfront vacation home, bring a shovel. while many americans are shovelling snow right now, folks in oregon are shovelling sand. a howling storm blew sand from the dunes on to houses right near waldport. digging out will take weeks. gretchen? >> brian, thank you so much for the laugh. ok. moving on. long before the government health care takeover passed, one county in michigan, well, they came up with their own idea to tackle mounting medical costs. they decided to invest in promoting healthy living and guess what? it's working. joining me now to explain more is oakland county executive george paterson. good morning to you. >> good morning. >> in 2006, you had a 20% jump in health care costs in your area and you decided to take action. what did you do? >> well, that 20% would wreak havoc with the budget so we had to somehow control our health care costs so we came up with a plan that's fairly comprehensive. we invested $400,000 in this

plan. that gives us the operating capital to do what we wanted to do. we have -- we bring our employees in, those who volunteer for a health screening and then a risk assessment and health screening, we take a little blood and check your cholesterol, your sugar and we take your blood pressure, you know, your bmi, and then we do the risk goes with it. if you go through both those steps, the screening and the risk assessment, we give you $100 giftcard. that's the carrot and then we find those people who are at risk. we refer them to their primary physician. 15% of those who came forward went to the doctor. this last year, we only found 4%. so we're beginning to see the kind of improvement we're looking for. >> yet -- >> that's just -- >> sorry to interrupt. but the one thing that struck my mind as you're talking there is that the one word is incentive. you incentivize these people with $100 gift cards to come and get checked out and that seems to be one thing that was missing from the health care bill on capitol hill. any incentive? >> it is and it's working like a charm. we also have other components. once by got the retention and

half the work force is participating. first year is 44% and now it's 56% so more and more are coming to the table. we have things like during lunch hour, pilates and yoga and jazzercize. we have weight watchers on campus. give everybody -- find out a coupon. all they can buy is either fruits and vegetables and go to the market. it's a component. we have a health care where everybody goes across the street to really 60 vendors. all health vendors and this is an ongoing process throughout the year to really raise awareness that you can't take control of your health issues. >> mr. paterson, i want to show how much it has changed in the projected costs. just this little program. $50 million. that was the projected cost for 2010. your actual cost was $38 million. it's working, isn't it? >> gretchen, that's the same cost we had in 2007 so really we're paying what we did four years ago so i think that's the proof right there that the program is working.

>> i hope other communities will look at you as a model for what they can do in their communities. brooks paterson, thanks for joining us today. >> sure, thank you. >> can you be banned from smoking in your own home? it could very well happen. the case now headed to the supreme court. and turn off your blackberry, arianna huffington, new e-mail that cell phones can bring planes down? stick around for that. i want to hear it, too. of my heart. for me cheerios is a good place to start. [ male anuncer ] to keep doing what you love, take re of your heart with cheerios. the whole grain oats can help lower cholesterol. love your heart so yo can do what you love. gotta get that bacon! dog: yummy. crunchy. bacon. bacon. bacon. there, in that bag! mom: who wants a beggin' strip? dog: me! i'd get it myself but i don't have thumbs! yum, yum, yum... it's beggin'! hm... i love you! beggin' strips! there's no time like beggin' time! than any of its german competitors. but it isn't real performance unless it's wielded with precision.

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>> welcome back. dispute between neighbors here in new york is heading to courts and putting smokers' rights in legal limbo. a new york city family is claiming their next door neighbor's cigar smoke is seeping into their apartment and is harming their health. and now they are suing. they want half a million dollars. so does the family have a fighting chance to win this case? former prosecutor joey jackson and attorney david schwartz join us for a fair and balanced

debate. joey, you say absolutely, this family should get the money. >> i say go get em. let's be clear about it. it's 500,000 per person. we're talking about a child here, charles, and we're talking about he's 6 and a little girl addison. she's 3. the smoke is killing them. >> it is? can you prove that? >> from a legal perspective, courts have already ruled that there's a violation of the warranty of habitability. that's when a person inhabits a home they're entitled to the use and quiet use of that home. smoke is a nuisance and it's also trespass. that's the law! >> what has happened to our society, steve? what is happening here? you can't even smoke in your own home anymore? we've taken away the rights of smokers everywhere in every aspect of society and now you can't smoke in your own home, this is ridiculous! >> no, it is not. >> there's a whole new wave of these secondhand lawsuits for people like joey to sue, great trial lawyer like this.

it's frivolous. >> hold a second, it's not against the law to smoke in your house, right? >> it could be. >> if there were -- that would -- i don't know if that's a good thing. >> let's talk about it. let's talk about it. all right, look, how that could possibly be? >> let's let wiser minds prevail here. let's have a civil discussion. things you do privately affect other people. case in point, people playing loud music, has it occurred to anyone that there are fights constantly over loud music? >> people are collapsing in the streets from secondhand smoke. secondhand smoke, i see people falling over all over the place. >> i got another one. here's the other one. not only is it the music, i once had a client arrested. he's in his home, undressing in front of the window, other people observe that. this guy does not live in suburbia, he lives in an environment where there are multiple other apartments there. it's seeping into the home and it's harming them. >> but it's not against the law and if the next door neighbor were a cigar smoker it wouldn't bother him. the guy who is being sued

apparently smokes as much as he can outside. he's got three air cleaners and he's hired professionals to seal off his apartment. >> not enough. >> he has -- >> isn't it an amazing phenomenon that now smoke is seeping in. people have been smoking in their homes for hundreds of years but all of a sudden, right now, it's all of a sudden sneaking in -- >> we are talking about a complex in manhattan. it's a multiple high rise complex. this guy is not living in suburbia. he's not living in the woods. he's living with other people. when you're living with other people, make sure you take steps to smoke that don't affect other people. >> this is crazy. we have gone way too far. >> yeah. >> get more than half a million. >> what do you think out there in tv land? who won this? joey or david? e-mail us right now at foxnews.com. >> now they're going to hug each other. please. >> dave is the man! >> all right. >> thanks, guys. good job. >> straight ahead, you can't help but question this latest report. americans will die from pre-existing conditions if republicans repeal health care. republican john fleming and democrat john garamendi here to

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[ laughing ] [ boy laughs ] ♪ to know, know, know you after this we're gonna get ice cream. can we go get some ice cam? yeah. ♪ and i do ♪ and i do ♪ and do >> good morning, everyone. hope you're having a great wednesday. it's january 19th. i'm gretchen carlson. this morning, it's the law of the land but by tonight, the health care law could be repealed at least in the house. and that vote getting even more powerful this morning. as two senators announce now they're quitting! >> wow. >> it seems like one of those annoying rules with no reason behind it. for new information on your cell phone, could your cell phone ring bring a plane down or is it a big scam? big ruse? we'll examine. >> meanwhile, 100 union teachers fired. they fought to get their jobs

back and eventually they got their jobs back. but apparently, they aren't very grateful. a lot of them are calling out sick day after day. that story and so much, you're watching "fox & friends" for a wednesday. >> you know what that means when we hear that ding, ding, ding. it means don king is right around the corner. boxing promoter, of course. >> i missed holyfield on monday so i had don king in today. he'll be joining us at the bottom of the hour. don king who is very pro president bush, remember? >> absolutely. he's a big conservative. we'll talk to him about all sorts of stuff. also dave ramsey, conservative with your money. governor scott walker, republican from the great state of wisconsin will be dropping by as well. >> betty white always wanted to meet pat toomey. you'll both be on the show. pat toomey here and betty white, one of them won an award. >> absolutely. 89 years old, celebrating a

birthday. >> pat toomey looks fantastic for 89. >> no, that's betty white. >> oh, i did not know. >> yeah, i don't think pat has crossed that threshold. maybe not 50 yet. >> dog years maybe. >> in meantime, they've been promising it since the election. what am i talking about? the republicans who said they would repeal the health care law. well, guess what? the vote will get started this morning at 10:00 a.m. it's expected to take all day. you have to stick around to fox news until about 6:30 p.m. to find out how it all turns out. >> both sides gave their -- gave their plea and in the end, it will go up for a vote but in the end after it passes the house which it will, then you wonder what's going to happen. nothing in the senate. harry reid said he's not going to put it up for a vote. eric cantor decides to call him out. >> he said, if harry reid is so confident that the repeal vote should die in the senate, then he should bring it up for a vote. if he's so confident he has got the vote. and as long as harry reid keeps it off the floor of the senate, that will just give the republicans something to hit him

in the head with. why won't you bring up it for a vote? why can't you defend it? that's the way the republicans are going to start their dialogue. >> not only would repeal not pass, but according to a poll by a.p. over the weekend, three out of four people don't want it to. why? because full repeal means raising taxes on small businesses, reopening the medicare doughnut hole and putting insurance companies back in charge of your health care. see, if republicans would counter that by saying the reason you don't want to bring it up on the senate floor is because the senators would actually be on record as how they voted for this and many of them are in conservative districts, democrats in conservative districts and how would that affect their re-election bid? >> sure, and there you go, that particular spokesperson is citing that a.p. poll. when that came out, democrats said look at that, that's such good news for us. we're going to use that. in the meantime, some had regarded that as an outliar, kind of a blip on the radar. where did that number come from? there's a brand new "washington post," abc poll out that shows

that 45% of americans support the health care reform bill. as it currently stands. 45%. and 50% oppose it. those are exactly the same numbers going back to august of 2009 when the debate started. >> let's talk about what happened yesterday. i know we got done with one election. important to go over two people that said don't count me in for the next election. on the senate side, there's senator joe lieberman. not going to do it. i'm not going for a fifth term, i think he said. he's over in connecticut. now, that, steve, could stay democratic, you have to think. independent who lost his primary battle won the general. senator ken conrad, more significant, democrat out of north dakota. he said i'm going to focus on my last two years cutting spending. and i'm not going to run again. >> this goes back to my original point about senators and re-election bids. so 23 democrats will be up for re-election in the next year. so now many people are wondering, well, how would that affect the health care vote

potentially? i mean, let's say, you know, the senate is not going to repeal health care right now and many believe today's actions are symbolic in nature. but then what happens the next time around if the senate turns republican and now you have a republican house and a republican senate and a democratic president or maybe you have a republican president after after 2012. >> even though senator webb has not said he's going to run again in virginia, george allen looks like he's going to run for the seat he lost to senator webb in virginia. senator george allen is a republican and that could change things in two years. >> sure. newt gingrich was on the sean hannity program last night reading the tea leaves. here's how he analyzes the situation. >> there are 23 senators up for re-election on the democratic side. two of them have already announced their retirement. the pressure on the other 21 to vote to repeal this is going to grow month after month. and i think you're going to find that the more people learn about this, the more determined they are to repeal it.

>> and so later today, the house will vote to repeal but then they're going to start the dialogue on how to replace it with something else. so if the house comes up with a great solution, you know, ok, we're going to keep this. we're going to get rid of that. we're going to keep this and we're going to get rid of that and that and that, that will add more pressure to the senate democrats and look, they came up with a pretty good bill. what do we do? we're in a political pickle. >> stay tuned to see what happens today. the rest your headlines for a wednesday. we begin with a deadly gas explosion and the exact moment it happened caught on camera. >> one person was killed in that blast. five were hurt. and the gas leak sparked that enormous fireball in a neighborhood. this is philadelphia. two homes went up in flames. dozens of people forced from their homes including 24 people from the senior citizen home. it could have sprayed shrapnel at marchers in a dr. martin luther king jr. parade.

the f.b.i. now confirming this a backpack found along the parade route in spokane, washington, contained both explosive material and a remote detonator. the feds calling this a clear cut case of domestic terrorism. thankfully the police department diffused that bomb before the parade began. no arrests, though, have been made. moments ago, fox news confirming that president obama will announce a bill on nuclear security with chinese president hu jintao. that will happen this morning. the deal would establish a jointly financed nuclear security center in china and would provide training to improve security at nuclear facilities. last night, hu was greeted by vice president biden at andrews air force base and taken to the white house for a private dinner with mr. obama and a few close aides. now i guess we know what gates, the secretary of defense is up to when he was over in china last week. meantime, two former police officers acquitted on charges that they used unreasonable force while arresting a suspect. the video we're about to show is

disturbing. in january of 2008, david doran and others were among five officers caught on camera beating anthony warren following a car chase. it shows warren's van hit one officer and sped away before flipping on a highway in birmingham, alabama. the officers who were fired now say that they want their jobs back. >> and those are your headlines. >> that's tough to watch. >> you know when you ride on a plane and the flight attendant says we're about to go. we've closed the door. turn off all electronic devices. some people think that doesn't interfere with the transmission and signals and all of the cables are shielded. it couldn't possibly actually interfere with flight safety, could it? well, as it turns out, according to an item in "the new york times" today, yes, it can -- your cell phone, your electronic gizmo can actually affect an airplane. >> i have a friend. i talked over the weekend, both might amaze you and they -- he's a pilot. >> yeah.

>> and one of the things he said to me, by the way, when you shut off your phone or all your devices, that is just something flight attendants do, so you pay attention to them as they give out -- give out instructions. >> thank you. >> so what they're trying to say is it is a ruse. that it doesn't matter. >> he's wrong. >> my husband believes that it's a reduuse. but he does turn them off. i told you about this a few weeks ago when i was coming back from christmas break, for the first time ever on a flight, the flight attendants after they asked people to turn off their electronic devices, they came on and said we still have four cell phones and two unknown electronic devices on so turn them off right now, we know who you are. do you think they have that capability? >> no. >> i don't think so. it was a good thing. gosh, she busted me. >> yeah, as if they got gps on your gps. what they say is it's interesting, a boeing engineer

says electronic devices do not cause problems in every case. but it's bad in so much as people assume it never will. and some of the problems are, for instance, an older plane might not have all the good shielding on the wiring and stuff. >> might have rotary phones. >> wait a minute, that's not too comforting to find out -- >> i got a 1957. >> they can fix it if you turn off your gizmo. >> that doesn't sound too comforting that the older play has wiring problem. >> it's not shielded against the transmission of cell phones and stuff like that. also, they worry that it will interfere with the landing when you're up. apparently, the troublesome part is when you're a little lower. when you're about to land and stuff like that, you get a disturbance if your gizmo that lands the plane. >> that's right. >> arianna huffington wouldn't turn hers off and somehow the plane ended up landing but everybody was annoyed by it. evidently, that's the big thing.

she refused to turn hers off and put everybody's life in jeopardy if steve's report is correct. >> it's "the new york times"! >> it's got to be true. >> if steve is right or my friend bob is right, we'll find out. >> steve or bob? >> steve or bob? >> we'll find out. but here's the thing, do people really want to -- do you really want to be making calls on the flight? because the minute you're able to do that, it's going to annoy a whole lot of people. >> that's just the noisy neighbor. what about the safety? forget about whether or not it makes a lot of racket . >> i wish somebody would just definitively tell us because you're right, safety is the most important thing about the whole deal. >> when you're up in the sky in a many ton plane, you want to come down safely. >> no kidding. >> coming up, you can't help but question the timing of this government report. americans will die from pre-existing conditions if republicans repeal health care. two lawmakers with first-hand knowledge of health care and insurance industries join us next. there they are right there.

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>> welcome back, everyone. as the republican controlled house prepares to vote now to repeal the health care law today, there's still a lot of debate over the law's actual benefits and more importantly the costs. >> people are not stupid. if people say we're passing a bill that's going to expand coverage to 33 million americans who haven't had it and this is going to reduce the deficit, they know you're talking out of your hat or that you have jiggled the numbers in such a way to make it look like that. the argument against this

deficit reduction is so clear and so obvious and easy to make. if republicans can't make it, they don't deserve to be the opposition. >> not everyone agrees, the cost of the bill outweighs the benefits. louisiana congressman and vice chair of the doctors caucus john fleming and california congressman join me now for a fair and balanced debate. good morning, congressman. >> good morning, gretch. >> all right, we heard charles krauthammer there, he said republicans should be able to defend this extremely well about the costs. how do you go about doing that? >> gretchen, you may recall that during the debate, on this health care reform, that the democrats cooking this behind closed doors went back and forth to the cbo asking how they could make this work. ultimately, what it came out to be was a disney fantasy of accounting where they took out big pieces of the cost and put

them into other bills. where they have double accounting of the savings from medicare which will not even occur to begin with. and then also they do something really strange and they manipulate the budget window by creating 10 years of revenue against six years of expenses. now, wouldn't roger ails love to run fox that way? and then finally, the class act which is a long-term care opt in that americans can choose, it's not mandatory, the premiums will go in for long term care but then they will actually be spent immediately for health care and this. >> you're doing a great job proving your point. i have to get the congressman in here, though. congressman, how do you respond to charles krauthammer who says when you add 33 million people to the medical, you know, list, who is going to pay for it? >> sure. well, those 33 million are principally, almost all of them

going in private insurance. they're not going to be on the federal programs, medicare and medicaid. but the medicaid and medicare programs will see prevention as part of the program. we all know and certainly my friend dr. fleming knows, if you're able to do prevention, that's early care, for example, diabetes or blood pressure, you will be able to reduce the cost of medical services over time and so those kinds of reductions at the -- on those programs that are federal are real. now, the 33 million are almost entirely in the private insurance sector and those will not be on the federal budget issues. it is the congressional budget office that has made the estimate that this program will save $230 billion over the next nine years. how they come to that conclusion, you can go back and forth on. but that is the conclusion of the independent nonpartisan congressional budget office. >> all right.

we got bogged down in numbers there and, unfortunately, we're out of time discussing it but we will all pay attention today to see exactly how this plays out in the house and what the senate does with this thing. thanks very much for your time this morning. >> thank you, gretchen. >> thank you. >> steve, brian? >> all right, gretch, thank you very much. 100 union teachers fired. begged for their jobs back and they won. what kind of appreciation are they now showing? well, a lot of them are calling out sick over and over again. we're going to talk to commissioner of education. >> that should be good and rahm emanuel and mayor mike bloomberg roped into the same f.b.i. investigation. what's going on? we'll talk about that. receiving the bronze star, that was definitely one of my oudest moments.

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>> here are the news by the numbers. first, two, that's how many people were charged with distributing e-mail uaddresses f ipad users. next $8.88, that's the cost of a gallon of gas. calm down, gretchen. at one illinois station. that was reportedly caused by a computer glitch and through a power outage and is now back to normal. finally 60%. steve, that's how many american teenagers aren't afraid to be facebook friends with their parents according to a new study. but the catholic prep survey found 38% of teens ignored their folks' friends requests. family intervention there. >> yeah. no, sorry, dad, never got it. meanwhile, central falls, rhode island, made national headlines when high school administrators fired 88 teachers. well, eventually the teachers union struck a deal with the school and most of those

teachers were rehired. now the school board says that some of those teachers are now skipping school. what's that about? we're joined by rhode island education commissioner deborah gist. good morning to you. >> good morning, steve. i remember talking to you on this program about how you guys fired all the teachers. the president of the united states said this is a step in the right direction. eventually the teachers came back and said we'll make the changes. can you explain why now so many of them seem to be calling in sick? >> well, you know, i think what's important to know is these efforts are not easy. you know, one of the reasons why we in our country haven't tended to intervene in schools that have been persistently low achieving is because this is really difficult work. and while this particular issue is not a challenge we necessarily anticipated, we knew that there were going to be some significant bumps in the road and so it's being addressed. >> well, that's good.

you know, there are people who are up there and they go look, they were all fired because essentially the system was broken. and this -- then they were rehired and this is how they show their gratitude by calling in sick. >> yeah, i mean, i think a lot of people have indicated concerns about the absenteeism rate. we're certainly concerned. i know the school board there in the town is concerned. and when i went and met with the teachers fairly recently, i heard from some of the fellow teachers that they're concerned and i've talked with students as well. so there's no doubt that having, you know, having absenteeism that's unacceptable rates is going to have a detrimental effect on the students achievement. and the good news is those rates have come down and so the attendance rate has improved in the last month or six weeks. >> right. and you mentioned, deborah, some of the teachers you met with. i read in one of the local papers up there that a math teacher said look, we're doing our job but the new management team is inexperienced. they're not supporting the teachers.

we're not getting the help we want. but ultimately, at the end of the day, when you worry about whether or not those little heads in the -- in the classroom are getting the information they need, everybody's got to be on the same page. everybody. the management and the teachers have got to be working together. >> that is so true, steve. that's one of the things that we are really, really emphasizing. that the -- you know, as i said in the beginning, this is really hard work. and i am confident that -- that, you know, until this team comes together, we stop blaming one another for what concerns we have but instead, look at those problems and determine how to problem solve together and start working together as a team. that -- when we do that, that's when we're going to be successful. >> well, you've got your hands full up there. thank you very much. the commissioner of education for joining us today to talk about the problems up there. >> thank you. >> all right. gretchen, brian, what's coming up? >> thank you very much, steve. let me tell you, new jersey governor chris christie standing

up to senator chuck schumer. listen. >> the additional $5 billion if he's got it, you know, since he's such an important guy in the united states senate now, maybe he's got it himself and wants to offer me another $5 billion. >> hear what else had to say in their latest border battle. >> then don't like the 66% tax hike in illinois? the governor of neighboring wisconsin is going to join us with a proposal for his neighbors escape to wisconsin. >> and first, beat the bears, i think his message is. then this man, professional boxing promoter don king. looking to say what's on his mind for a change. he's got an important message and he's going to weigh in on the political scene. >> the first black tea party, right? >> i'm so happy to be with you both, gretchen and brian. >> too bad steve is here. >> right. >> i love you. it's pain relief without the pills. no pills, no pain. how can you get pain relief

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was an archer drawing his bow. ♪ could that have also inspired its 556 horsepower supercharged engine? ♪ the all-new cadillac cts-v coupe. we don't just make luxury cars, we make cadillacs. >> welcome back, everyone. a fox news alert. a big earthquake strikes in pakistan. dominick is live for us there with all of the details. good morning to you. or good afternoon. >> good afternoon from here. good morning to you guys. in america, i kid you not when i say this was a massive close call for millions of people here in central asia.

the epicenter just 200 miles away from where i stand. it woke us up about 1:20 in the morning and i mean, this was a major shake. it threw us out of bed and swell to 30 or 40 seconds. it was felt as far away as dubai from 2,000 miles away to our west and in new delhi in india, 1,000 miles in the opposite direction. it caused panic in the streets. people came rushing out of their buildings and they were holding their hands up to the sky praying for allah to save them. there's after tremors and we're still actually in a state of emergency, situation of emergency with the services standing by just in case we do have actually repeated shocks. of course, it turned out that actually it was in such remote areas, sparsely populated areas, there were very few injuries. we heard of actually just three people, amazingly just three people who were just injured when the roof collapsed on their house. why this happened, where the epicenter was is a big issue here. it's close to the afghanistan

border where there are taliban elements who will take advantage of natural disasters like this to gain support by helping those people. we'll see what the repercussions of that actually are over the next few days as the authorities try to actually stop that from happening. back to you guys. >> all right. they dodged a bullet there. keep us posted. at 28 minutes after the top of the hour, steve doocy, put a gps on him. plugged him in. >> i think he went off -- he has his back to us. and he went outside. >> i'm just reading the zipper on the outside of our world headquarters here, the latest headlines from the fox news corner of the world. so don't read the building. read our information. and right now, we want to tell you all about the day ahead weatherwise. and take a look at a map. shows you that we do have a little bit of some rain and some snow moving through porpgss of the northeast. down through the delmarva and back through portions of west virginia at this hour. also, they've had a big storm move through dixie land over the last 12 hours all the way from

the gulf coast right up -- right now, it's exiting the carolinas. next map shows you the temperature as you head out today to school or work. if you push the button and take a look. bitterly cold, only one in minneapolis. you add 10 to it and you got rapid city's temperature. 16 right now in chicagoland. much of the ohio valley stuck in the 20's as is the case throughout new england and 40's in the mid atlantic. later on today, the highs only going to be 22 in kansas city. however, through portions of the mid and lower mississippi valley, temperatures in the 40's and in the 50's. 60's along the gulf coast all the way from texas right through florida where, look at tampa, showing off almost 70 degrees later today. all right. that's a quick look at the fox travelcast from outside our world headquarters. >> steve was reading the headlines but did it to himself. we'll have to read them outloud for the rest of america. ok? >> ok. let's do just that. >> i'll kick it off. we begin with the fox news alert. at least seven people now confirmed dead. dozens more hurt after a

homicide bomber blew himself up -- blew up an ambulance, i should say, this morning in iraq. it happened at the iraqi police compound. a second bomber was shot dead by police before he could enter the compound. gretch? >> cadaver dogs found evidence in the case of missing 13-year-old cheerleader haley dunn. police haven't disclosed what that evidence is only saying it was discovered at a landfill in abilene, texas. that's horrible news. and that is 70 miles away from dunn's hometown of colorado city where she was reported missing last month. mother's former live-in boyfriend shawn atkins was the first person to see haley and is a person of interest in the case. >> meanwhile, in a new interview, astronaut mark kelly, the husband of congresswoman gabrielle giffords suggests he does not want her to return to congress. he also says he heard the initial reports that she died. >> tv on and they reported that she had died. and the kids started crying. my mother, you know, starts --

she almost screamed. and i just walked into the bathroom and, you know, broke down. >> investigators also released a description of the still unreleased surveillance tape showing giffords being shot and an investigator describes the footage as "five seconds of horror." it also reportedly shows judge john roll jumping on top of a giffords staffer and saving his life. the judge was killed in the shooting. >> it's no tunnel of love between new jersey governor chris christie and senator chuck schumer of new york. schumer blasted christie for killing a proposed $8.7 billion rail tunnel urged the hudson river. well, christie in rare form fired back. >> was a terrible, terrible decision. >> if senator schumer would like to tell me where he was going to get the additional $5 billion if he got it, you know, since he's such an important guy

in the united states senate now, maybe he's got it himself and wants to offer me another $5 billion, maybe we can have a conversation. until that time, he should mind his manners on the other side of the hudson river. >> touche, i guess. christie says the tunnel would have been a boondoggle for new york and bad deal for new jersey because his state would have been stuck with the cost overruns. >> which could have been into the billions. >> all right. hey, we're going toe to toe with our next guest, legendary boxing promoter don king is here. he's got a little promoter in him, doesn't he? >> he's an american. he fights back, you know, he don't just take it on the chin without giving retaliation. he's a counterpuncher. >> that's good. new york, new jersey, let them fight it out. >> did you hear in houston, they're holding their first black tea party with african-americans. they say we're trying to break the stereotype that the tea party is racist. >> well, that's going to be very difficult for them because we have 400 years of stereotype

image, steve. we're lazy, lethargic and we can't rise to the occasion. we all lie, cheat and steal. we're heathens and savages. you have to overcome that. we're doing a great job in america to bring about change into this type of activity that's been perpetuated so long. i think they should also remove the 3/5 compromise from our constitution. >> amended it. >> yes, amend, no, no, amend, take out, delete, because tradition keeps things going. it doesn't have to be what you say today or whatever. you have to identify it. they say the n word, you know what that means. all these different things. let's remove some of these symbols and customs and traditions and make america what america could be. that liberty and depth of spirit, equality, all of us working together. working together. >> you're a good motivator. let's take a look at the mission statement of this tea party. >> all right. >> that's being formed down in houston, texas. to build a strong base of conservative black entrepreneurs, elected officials and constituents that provide

black conservatives a viable way to express and implement their conservative values politically. what do you think about that? >> well, i think that's a cause where if they stick to the constitution and fight for the rights of the american people indivisible with liberty and justice for all, this is what it has to be. we dressed up as mohawk indians and threw away the tea for talking about a tax law and talking about taxation without representation, you know what i mean? >> sow got to be able to understand all these different parties that are going to come up. i'm a republicrat. i'm for whoever is best for america. the american people, you know, black and white alike, not the individual. but you must identify with what you come from with ethnicity, being whatever you are and being equal. being able to deal with one another, you know what i mean? that's what we're going to do on the big fight we have. >> i'm worried about boxing. i'm a huge boxing fan. i'm worried about it. i haven't seen you in a while. march 12th you have a big date

that's going to help bring the sport back, right? >> it's going to be great. it's going to be in las vegas at the mgm grand, bob arham and myself. >> two enemies. >> coming together. working together works. that's what america is all about. >> we're demonstrating that, you know, not talking the talk, we're talking the talk and walking the walk. >> who's in the ring? >> you got ricardo mayorba, and he's taking on miguel koto, he is from puerto rico, you know what i mean? >> you have the flag today? >> i got the -- >> where's my puerto rico flag? puerto rico! puerto rico! no, no, no! puerto rico! yes. >> all right. >> comedy. >> now, what weight class are those two fight sneers? >> they're going to fight 154, super welterweight and junior middleweight, they'll be fighting from nicaragua so this is for him, ricardo and i think it's going to be a super fight. it's going to be a great, great

fight and we are demonstrating even though we have different ideas going in different directions, we can come together in america to make things better and we'll have a super sensational fight. >> you have someone on the fight that is a future rabbi. >> he's going to be a rabbi, going to be able to get out there and teach. there he is. baby. >> evander holyfield was here on monday, he's 48, he's going to fight again. do you think he's going to win? >> he's winning if he has the ability and the capability to go into the ring at 48. at 45, they can't get in. the real deal is trying to do his thing but we got another great fight, too, brian, we got one that's on the 29th of january. this fight is going to take timothy bradley and devon alexander, the best two in the world other than mayweather. that will be in michigan. >> always great to see you. >> always a pleasure to see you. >> gretchen, you're lovely. i envy your husband.

oh, man, wow! and brian, you're beautiful. just great for boxing, that's what friends mean. friends in america. >> and that's the best of all. >> thank you, guys. >> still not sure where to start. dave ramsey is here answering your e-mails. >> and great news for women, a common prescription pill showing surprising side effect. it prevents hot flashes? >> i'll drink to that. but first, the trivia question of the day born on this day in 1947, the emmy award winning celebrity chef is a recovering agoraphobic. who is she? be first at friends of foxnews.com. don't bring a spider. i believe that's a fear of spiders, isn't it? [ male announcer ] in the event of a collision, the smartest thing you could do is cut the fuel supply...

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>> become back. the makers of tylenol say certain recalled products are safe even though they were made in a dirty factory. they are voluntarily recalling the products including tylenol arthritis and benadryl because they were made in a plant closed for insufficient cleaning. a new study finds the anti-depressant pill lexapro is cut the frequency and severity of hot flashes. they found 55% of the women taking it saw the hot flashes drop by 50%. and that's good news. steve? >> all right, gretch, thanks very much. tax season officially under way. starting the beginning of this year. >> ok, i'll take it from here. what do you need to know? what's the smartest way to spend your return? personal finance expert dave ramsey joins us to answer your financial questions. we got some financial questions for you. you want to start? >> absolutely. let's dive in. >> let's go from shannon in nebraska. >> that's right. she writes i'm wondering what i should do with our tax refund

when we receive it. we have considerable credit card debt, do we use it towards that or build an emergency fund? mr. ramsey? >> great question. first thing you want to do is build up a little starter emergency fund of $1,000. once you've got that, we're going to attack our debts, listing them smallest to largest and attacking them in that order. but what you need to remember is you shouldn't be getting a tax return. that's right. a tax return, a tax refund simply means you've loaned the government money free with no interest all year long. so change your w-4. >> that's like a bad christmas club. charles from texas writes, while trying to pay off debt, should you suspend charitable giving? >> i remember suspending miscellaneous charitable giving. if you're a person of faith, i'm an evangelical christian and i tithe in my local church. miscellaneous charitable giving, temporarily suspend it while you work your way out of debt.

>> mike from new mexico writes i'm in the military and we will be moving in the next month. what's the best way to budget for a move? we're trying to pay off debt with our extra income. >> you better push pause on that get out of debt thing for right now and pile up some cash so that this move doesn't end up being debt out of -- doesn't create more debt. so let's push pause and get the move accomplished. then go back and push play again and kick your get out of debt plan back in gear. >> uh-huh. all right. thank you very much. we're going to hit pause on you for today. we'll see you next week, dave ramsey. >> have a good morning. >> straight ahead, if people in illinois don't like the new 96% tax hike, 66% tax hike, 96 would be a little steep, the governor of wisconsin wants to welcome them with open arms. governor scott walker here next. >> on this date in 1972, don mclean had the number one hit "bye-bye, american pie."

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>> answer to the trivia question, paula dean. the winner is not her. tom wins from gillette, wyoming. all right, illinois is about to feel the pain of a 66% state tax hike but their neighbor is ready to soothe their aches. >> that neighbor being wisconsin and wisconsin governor scott walker stepping in luring unhappy illinois businesses across state lines. the governor joins us now to explain exactly how he plans to do that. good morning to you, governor. >> good morning. yeah, we put up signs yesterday that basically took the place of

the old governor's name in the wisconsin side and instead, we put up new shingles that say "open for business." we wanted to make a clear message to our friends in the land of lincoln while taxes were headed in the wrong direction, we're going in the opposite direction and we're making it easier, lowering the tax burden and lowering the cost when it comes to regular laying, litigation and health care and we have a great incentive for companies that want to come from illinois to wisconsin, we got a two year reprieve in the corporate income tax and another incentive to come up to the great badger state. >> so you realize it's a matter of growing your way out of this. not taxing your way out of this. why is your reality not the same reality in illinois? >> well, big difference. it's not only where we're at but where we're headed. we're headed towards a more business friendly climate. we pulled out the old motto from years ago to escape to wisconsin. we think it's really true because you jump whether it's 2/3 of an increase or 96% increase. i think it's headed towards that 96%. they have a pension system that's barely half funded.

ours is 100% funded and they're heading in the direction of not making the tough decisions. instead of making tough spending decisions, they just raise taxes of individuals and corporations. they'll have to go down that path again. in contrast, we're making tough decisions in wisconsin to balance the budget so we're not back, facing tough budgets in the next couple of years. >> it was actually amazing when illinois started discussing this 66% tax increase but i want you to also talk about unions because many of the problems that these states going broke are facing is paying out the pensions that are associated with these unions. some have even called it a ponzi scheme. what are you doing? what are you proposing in wisconsin? >> well, right, what we're looking at to balance our budget. we inherited. i was just put in about 2 1/2 weeks ago. we inherited about a $3 billion budget deficit. for us, it means controlling spending and the biggest part of that not only for state government but local governments in which we provide the majority of funding is wages and benefits. so we put out just as an

example, a 5% contribution or pension system and a 12% contribution for premiums for health care which i think your viewers would say are pretty realistic compared to the rest of the world outside of government. that would save us just in six months alone $154 million. those are real savings. to do that, though, we're going to have to make changes in collective bargaining and question whether or not you have a public union to begin with. >> how do you view it? wisconsin doesn't need it. many states do, a couple dozen states need federal bailouts to meet their bills. where do you stand? should the federal government bail out states? >> absolutely not. i think we ran into troubles when the federal government tried to come in and bail out companies that were supposedly too big to fail. if you bail people out, we see that even with some of the larger companies, they fail to make the long-term decisions that will correct these legacy costs. we need to get those under control and it's exactly what we're doing here in wisconsin and what they're failing to do down in springfield that makes the difference when it comes to employers and residents wanting to come up here. >> brian and i are both huge football fans and you have a

huge game coming up this weekend. speaking of illinois and wisconsin, it's packers-bears. what kind of bet are you going to have going with the gov of illinois? >> well, we went on twitter. in fact, we're still taking at govwalker, our twitter site suggestions. and we're going to announce that later today. as you can imagine, a lot of suggestions in terms of good wisconsin food, cheese and beer, and kranberries and custard and you name it. but one of the most intriguing ones i got from one of the folks on the twitter site in terms of a retreat back was the idea of flying the opposing team's flag over the state capitol. there's all sorts of great ideas like that. we'll announce it a little bit later today. but that one is good natured. we'll have some fun with it. the greatest rivalry in all of professional sports. packers will win 28-24 on sunday. >> steeped in history. you'll take full credit. thanks so much. and be good to see if you can make it to the super bowl or not. meanwhile, thanks, governor. let's go to steve in charge of something important. >> yes, from cheese to freeze. we can freeze the debt ceiling and still have 10 times more income than we need.

that is according to senator pat toomey of pennsylvania. he is here to explain his plan. and late last night, betty white, the beloved star was taking shots of vodka and now she is heading to our green room so betty, i've got your coffee in hand. you're going to need it. betty white in the next hour of "fox & friends." decisions, decisions. which beneful prepared meal tonight? roasted chicken recipe? okay, savory rice and lamb stew.

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>> gretchen: good morning, everyone. it's wednesday, january 19, 2011. i'm gretchen carlson. take a look at a live look at capitol hill where the house will vote to repeal health care two hours from now. and the president already hinting he might be willing to compromise on health care. >> steve: meanwhile, philadelphia rocked by a massive explosion. rolling at the exact moment it happened. stay right here. all the details straight ahead. >> brian: guns just like these could be going straight from the store to a classroom near you.

how do you feel about teachers packing heat? "fox & friends" is red hot right now and starting right now. >> gretchen: welcome. we hope you're having a fantastic wednesday. we're into the middle of the week. guess who we have coming up on our show today? somebody who turned 89 on monday and is still red hot. >> steve: there she is, speaking of hot. she's the star of the hit show on tvland "hot in cleveland." betty white, however, last night was on the letterman show and looked like she was doing vodka shots. we'll find out what kind of shape betty is on this day after the big day. >> brian: i saw her host "saturday night live" and i watched her play football in the super bowl. she looked fantastic.

>> beth: she got tackled. >> brian: right, which i think is wrong. >> steve: but abe vigoda, too. are we booking him? >> brian: no, big rivals. but tomorrow, the fish trivia. >> gretchen: another rivalry going on called the health care debate. today it's going to be a significant day because the house is going to vote on whether or not to repeal the health care bill that passed last year. the vote will start at 10:00 o'clock. it will take a long time. it will go until 6:30. so if you want the end result, watch fox at the end of the day. >> steve: they will vote to repeal it and then vote to -- how to replace it. paul ryan says we're doing this as our first order of business because we promised you. >> we are here because we heard the american people in the last election. we are here because we believe it's really important to do in office what you said you would

do. we said we would have a straight up or down vote to repeal this health care law and that's precisely what we're doing here today. >> brian: they're not offering a a replacement yet. first they want to knock it out and see if they can convince the senate to do it. but a representative in california doesn't think it's a good idea. >> i would hate that we wouldn't use the institution of congress, the congress of the united states, to simply fulfill campaign promises. if we're not going to actually try to make real law, it's a very expensive proposition to use the institution of the united states house of representatives simply to send a political message. i would hope that our efforts are always to make good law because every single day that we're here is costing the taxpayers a pretty penny and so i don't think they asked us to come here to spin our wheels and send political messages. >> brian: they got some power.

they want to straighten out the record. >> gretchen: come on, both political parties do some song and dance and don't always use the taxpayers' dollars to the best of their ability. >> steve: right. when nancy pelosi took over as speaker of the house, they did all sorts of stuff right in the beginning because they said we promised we were going to do that. it's interesting, this is not going to be the end of the health care bill. there are a lot of republicans who know it won't just change automatically today. it won't take a month. it won't take a year. there are some, like steve king, the republican from iowa, who has on his calendar january 20, 2013 circled because he says that is when they can get a clean repeal. that would be when he and other republicans say we can control the house, we can control the senate. we could have a republican in the white house. >> gretchen: somebody is going to stand in their way, and that's president obama. does that have anything to do with why he's changing his tune on health care? does he have reelection in his sights? of course he does. here is his statement. >> brian: the president says this, i'm willing and eager to

work with democrats and republicans to improve the affordable care act, but we can't go backwards. americans deserve the freedom and security of knowing insurance companies cannot deny cap or drop their coverage when they need it. while taking meaningful steps. the president's open, the third ranking democrat in the house, cliburn, surprised me by saying, i'm open to making it better. others have said, i perceive problems with it, even in the senate, has been on the record saying it's not a perfect bill. so maybe there might be some wiggle room here, although the republicans don't seem in a compromising mood. >> gretchen: too bad they didn't have that compromising mood a couple months, and then it wouldn't have been a slam dunk through without listening to any of the other side. now they're facing the pressure because of what happened in the midterm elections and now suddenly singing a different tune. >> brian: we're finding out what's in it and it's disturbing a lot of people and companies are saying, i need an exemption and they're getting it.

there could be something wrong. >> steve: you'll see the vote live right here on fox. in the meantime, china's president and president obama reportedly have reached a major deal over nuclear weapons safety. mike emmanuel is at the white house with the very latest. mike, i got your blackberry message in the 7:00 o'clock hour with just that news. what details do we have? >> steve, we expect the announcement, full details later today, but the bottom line is the u.s. and china will work more closely on nuclear security, putting a joint nuclear security center in china. when you consider their neighborhood, they're obviously great concerns about north korea and u.s. officials will tell you the only thing north korea does is produce weapons, produce nuclear products, and then they try to sell them on the black market. so there is obviously grave concern about north korea's activities and so if the u.s. and china are working together on this issue, both countries likely say that is a good idea, steve. >> steve: and mike, the white house has been tamping down expectations. we're not even going to call

this a summit. but are there expectations for anything to be big and have a major breakthrough? >> we're not expecting a major breakthrough. they have really said there are significant differences between the two countries and what this visit is all about is trying to find some common ground, areas of mutual interest such as that nuclear security deal. bottom line, both countries want to see the recovery of the global economy because if the global economy is strong, both countries do better. so they will continue the conversations and continue working on the relationship, guys. >> steve: okay. that's important. mike, thank you very much. >> brian: always good to work on a relationship. >> gretchen: now we have your headlines. fox news alert, moments ago, secretary of state hillary clinton said she will not commit to serving a second term. i think she said that before. she was asked if she plans to retire along with defense secretary robert gates who is set to retire later this year. >> no, i have committed to

president obama that i will stay with him this first term and i intend to do so. >> how about the second term? >> well, that is not something i'm in any way committing to or even thinking about. >> gretchen: clinton says that she's looking forward to returning to private life at some point. the exact moment of a deadly gas explosion all caught on camera. unfortunately, one person killed in that blast. at least five injured when the gas leak sparked an enormous fire ball in a philly neighborhood. two homes went up in flames. >> i said there is no way. it was that bad. >> gretchen: dozens of people forced from their homes, including 24 people from a senior citizens home. it could have spread shrapnel in the parade.

the f.b.i. now confirming a backpack found along the parade route in spokane, washington contained explosive material and a detonator. thankfully the police department defused that bomb before the parade began. no arrests had been made yet. big news coming out of connecticut today. after five terms, connecticut senator joe lieberman will announce his retirement today. it will be effective at the end of his term next year. the democrat turned independent was an outspoken supporter of john mccain. candidates to replace him already lining up. among them, last year's republican candidate linda mcmahon and democratic congressman chris murphy and joe courtney. those are your headlines. maybe lieberman realized after supporting mccain as a republican, his chances in connecticut could not be so great. >> steve: no kidding. >> brian: if a student walks into a classroom in your state and shoots a vice principal and kills himself, you want to

think, how could that happen? how do we stop it from happening again? one senator thinks he has the answer. >> steve: he's in nebraska and he has proposed a bill where members of a school administration, perhaps a principal, teachers, the security team as well if they're lucky enough to have somebody on the payroll like that could carry guns because in a lot of instances, they simply don't. the lucky school districts have the money in their budgets where they can hire an off-duty police officer and they come armed. we asked you what you thought, whether or not it was a good idea to arm the people in the schools. >> gretchen: john said this, i always believed the best deterrent is an armed pop lace. just like trained and armed pilots can deter violence in the skies. >> brian: meanwhile, tom in arkansas says this: the classroom is not the place for lethal weapons. something nonlethal should be used. stun gun, tasers.

strict criteria for when to use them. >> steve: not a bad idea. mitch in alabama, says guns in schools would be a good thing as long as those who carry them have training regarding when and under what conditions can deadly force be used. >> gretchen: it was interesting talking to dog chapman yesterday, the bounty hunter. he said he does not carry a firearm. he's a convicted felon, so he can't. but he says he has other weapons that do the trick. >> brian: he's been asking about background checks. how did the shooter in arizona get a gun? >> steve: because if you pick up a bad guy and he might be armed and you're not, you want to know all you can before you knock on the door. >> brian: up next, why incoming members of the tea party decided to take a trip to the war zone. senator pat toomey is here to explain. >> gretchen: betty white turned 89 years young and she's here to celebrate with us and join us on

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>> gretchen: 15 minutes after the top of the hour. freshman tea party lawmakers getting an up close look at our foreign policy. mitch mcconnell took some of them to afghanistan and pakistan where they met with general david petraeus and afghan president karzai. >> brian: some say the trip was an effort to lure the lawmakers away from the tea party. pennsylvania republican senator pat toomey was on the trip and joins us right now. senator, welcome. >> morning, guys. thanks for having me. >> brian: no problem. i want to get your take on the debt creeling and whether we should lift it. but first things, on the trip, was it part of it seeing the troops and part of it to sway you away from the tea party? >> there was no discussion about

the tea party whatsoever. it was a very, very rigorous -- actually grueling couple of days, three or four days, but it was very, very helpful to get a better understanding of the challenges that we face, the tremendous progress we've been making recently, and the threats that still loom. but i left enormously impressed with the men and women in uniform who were doing a spectacular job. i think they're making real progress, but it is fragile. it's still reversible. pakistan play has huge role in making sure that afghanistan is in a position to take over its own security requirements. but i'm cautiously optimistic. i feel better about afghanistan than i did when i left. but i'm more worried about pakistan than i was. >> gretchen: so is this just political gamesmanship that people would come out and say, hey, mitch mcconnell took these tea party people along -- is that just one person's analysis as a way of trying to find something negative? >> absolutely. someone trying to come up with a story to try to divide republicans from each other. look, when we're at war, that's

the most important decision we make and how we handle that war going forward is the most important responsibility we have. and i just felt it was my obligation to understand this as well as i could and to have a chance t sit down with general petraeus and get his input and that of the commanders in the field and then to sit down with president karzai and share with him my concern about the corruption in the afghan government, which i did. that is just a really important experience and it leaves me much better informed about this war effort. >> brian: let's talk about the debt ceiling. everyone saying, we're going to raise it. we don't have is a choice. we've been raising it since 2002. senator toomey, you say perhaps, but there has got to be something else included before you agree to raise the debt ceiling in this country. >> absolutely. i think the most irresponsible thing we could do is raise the debt ceiling and keep going, spending money the way we have, running up massive deficits, and unaffordable debt. so i've said i'm only willing to vote to raise the debt ceiling

if we get real spending cuts and we get real reforms in the process that got us into this mess. some on the left who just want to keep growing spending say, well, you don't have any choice. you got to raise the debt ceiling or we'll default on our bonds. i wrote this essay that makes it clear that the ongoing tax revenue alone is ten times what we need to service our debt. so there is no need to default on our bonds and i'm going to introduce legislation to make sure that under no circumstances would we ever default on our bonds. but i really think it would be a huge mistake to go along with business as usual, keep on spending and raise the debt ceiling whenever government wants more money. >> gretchen: all right. very interesting take. we'll see how that legislation goes when you propose it. pat toomey, thanks so much for joining us, especially to talk about the afghanistan trip which i think is so crucial to politicians to see it firsthand. thank you. >> thanks for having me. >> brian: and the senator in his column breaks down in detail how he would do it and what our financial situation is actually like. right now, steve is poised to

tell us what's coming up next. >> steve: coming up shortly, peter johnson, jr. is going to join us and talk a little bit about how the white house is not that serious about what is going on in the congress. he will join us live. and last night she was on letterman. this weak she's celebrate ago birthday. are you decent, betty? >> more or less. >> steve: all right. ladies and gentlemen, the great betty white in the make-up room. are you ready for a big show? >> of course i am. of course i am or i wouldn't be here. >> steve: all right. live from new york, betty white, as we roll on for this wednesday. ♪ proud to stand on our own ♪ proud to be homegrown ♪ a familiar face and a name you know ♪ ♪ come on ♪ we know you and we know your needs ♪ ♪ we know what being a neighbor means ♪

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>> brian: fox news alert. 12 people reported dead, another

52 hurt after homicide bomber blew up an ambulance this morning in iraq. it happened at the iraqi police compound near bukuba. california school district promise to do review its security policy after two students were accidentally shot yesterday. it accidentally fired while being carried in a student's backpack. the student is in custody. the two others hospitalized. steve? >> steve: thanks. house republicans say they're listening to what the majority of americans want by repealing the health care law. but white house spokesperson robert gibbs had a different opinion about today's vote. >> i would share the belief of many, including enunciated those who were going to vote for repeal. it's not a serious legislative effort. >> steve: huh? is that an insult to say an insult to do what most americans want isn't serious? let's talk to peter johnson, jr., our fox news legal analyst.

>> it's diss, but it covers up what's going ton in the white house. i'm afraid the president wakes up with a tremendous headache this morning because you consider what's happened in two years, there has been a dramatic shift in support for the president's policies with regard to health care. whatever poll you believe, the country is terribly divided with regard to what the plan should be going forward to improve health care in this country and to improve health care outcomes. but i think this reflects two things, the will of the american people in changing the complexion of congress, and number two, it's really a morality play. it's a life or death struggle in this country because it goes to an issue that unites all of us, that's our mortality. with regard to our mortality and our ability to see doctors, a lot of people in this country say not so sure it's a fundamental right. not so sure that i should provide a free lunch to others who do not wish to provide for

themselves. not so sure that the government should tell me what i should or shouldn't do, what product i should or shouldn't purchase and now 26 states in the country are signing on to that proposition in a court challenge. a lot of people are saying, i believe taxes are going to go up. i believe the deficit will go up. i believe the jobs are going to be lost. i believe that my health care will be curtailed, not maintained, and not improved. >> steve: right. the other problem for the white house is the fact that while they work so hard to get this thing passed and nancy pelosi famously said, we got to pass it to find out what's in it, most of it hasn't gone into effect yet, so we don't know. >> and steny hour made it clear that he didn't believe the democrats did a good job in explaining it. the truth is americans understand what's in it. they understand that certain health insurance plans will be taxed. they understand already that health insurance has risen, in some cases, 2 or 3%, as part of

the regulations of obamacare that has gone into effect. all americans understand that insurance companies should not get away with mal treating any american. they understand also, though, that the pharmaceutical industry should be held to account. direct questions, was the pharmaceutical industry held to account with regard to this deal? what we're seeing today is an epiphany for this white house in some way where the rubber meets the road where they say, listen, we didn't make the case for this. we made it in the democratic congress. we didn't make it with the people. this is the burden that the president faces over the next two years. this issue will continue to be debated. will the republicans come up with a replacement plan? that's the issue that we need. >> steve: peter johnson, jr. >> it is serious. >> steve: it is, absolutely. let's hope everybody takes it that way. gretchen, over to you. >> gretchen: thank you very much. there was no stopping these cars. check out this amazing video and scary video shooting down an icy hill for hours on end. watch that.

crash. and you saw him host the golden globes. now we'll show you what you didn't see. check out his golden trunks. they didn't shield him from celebrities who say he was too mean. oh, get over it. betty white weighs in on the controversy when she joins us on the couch. bring her on in, brian. >> brian: all right.

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>> our government believes that china is -- has unfair economic practices and china feels it's not getting enough credit for inventing spaghetti. hopefully the visit will help with that and who is also going to meet with business leaders in washington, d.c. and visit chicago. if he likes what he see, maybe he might buy us. who knows? >> brian: who knows? >> steve: who knows. >> gretchen: he already owns us, so that's the problem. >> brian: just 11% of our debt. >> gretchen: that's a problem in negotiating. let's do some headlines for you because we have to start with fox news alert. the u.s. navy saying it recovered the body of a sailor who went missing late yesterday in the gulf of oman. he was on board the uss halting. that sailor reportedly a female, has not been identified, pending

family notification. >> steve: in a new interview astronaut mark kelly, the husband of gabrielle giffords, suggests he does not want her to return to congress after she recovers from being shot. >> it's tough, tough decision, probably not. but i know that's probably not going to matter to her. i think she's such a devoted public servant that she's going to come out of this and be more resolved to fix things, that will make things better for people. >> steve: investigators also releasing a description of the still unreleased surveillance tapes from inside the safeway showing giffords being shot from about three feet away. an investigator describing the footage as, quote, five seconds of horror. it also reportedly shows judge john roll jumping on top of giffords' staffer and saving that person's life. the judge, however, lost his. >> gretchen: the makers of tylenol say certain recalled

products are safe, even though they were made in a dirty factory. they're recalling the products because they were made in a plant in pennsylvania. what happened to that plant? it was closed for insufficient cleaning procedures. the company says the recall involving tylenol arthritis and benadryl, just a precaution and consumers don't need to take any action. >> brian: slipping and sliding common in the northeast, but pittsburgh may have had the worst of it with icy streets and sidewalks being the norm. one car slid into a house. another driver said it took 45 minutes to travel 30 feet in the corner of his block. paramedics answered 30 calls. while claims adjustors will have their hands full and none of the injuries appear serious. that's news yet. >> steve: that one is going -- whoa. air bag deployment on that one. meanwhile, larry king says he's ready to come out of retirement to fill in for regis philbin. but just for a couple of weeks. this after regis made the big

announcement yesterday, he's calling it quits. >> this will be my last year on this show. >> steve: oh, reg. he will end his 28-year run as the co-host of live in september sore august, he said. a couple of weeks after his 80th birthday and the replacement rumors are already in overdrive. rumored to be among the replacements, kelly's husband and ryan seacrest, and jeff probst's name, one of the suggestions. bete white joins us for instant analysis. good morning to you, betty. >> good morning, sweety. how are you? >> steve: fine, sweety. >> okay. >> brian: look at that deep announcer voice. >> steve: how do you feel about regis calling it quits? >> i think the only reason he's doing that is to kind of think maybe i'll follow his example. everybody that's been around for

63 years and he thinks if he quits, maybe i'll quit. but i won't, reg, i won't. >> gretchen: why would you quit how? you're sitting on top of the world. >> why quit when you're having such a good time? >> steve: yes. who would be a good replacement for him? >> for him? >> steve: yes. >> i think maybe robert redford maybe. >> gretchen: you're going for the good looking chaps. >> steve: a sexy guy in the chair? >> to me, any guy is sexy, i'm sorry. >> brian: you told me mind the scene, you never liked regis, so this was are relief. >> oh, i can't stand him. but i pretend. as a matter of fact, i'm going to do his show today. i'll fool him. he'll never know. >> brian: we took cable out of his office. >> i think i might be a replacement for him and the first thing i'd do is fire kelly i'm just trying to help.

>> steve: you are responsible for kathie lee getting fired. >> yes, well, we don't talk about that. >> gretchen: something else that a lot of people are talking about are the golden globes from over the weekend and rickey investor jays was the host. although the organizers maybe weren't so happy that they chose him after what he actually said on the live telecast. >> he got a little racy, you know. >> brian: yes, he did. >> gretchen: he made fun of the people who were in the audience. >> steve: to their face. >> yeah, well, if you're going to do it, don't do it behind their backs. >> gretchen: what do you think about it? was it over the top or is that what you get when you hire a comedian? >> i think comedy is such a delicate balance that you can step over the edge so easily without -- of course, i never have. [ laughter ] but what hits somebody funny, hits somebody else as objectionable. it's kind of hard to balance.

>> steve: sure. it was a great -- i actually liked the program itself. michael douglas came out, he was fantastic. we saw deniro. there are a -- there are some stories about how a number of, let's call them veteran hollywood stars, are coming back. 79-year-old larry hagman. remember from "dallas"? he's on "desperate housewives." and bob newrart on ncis. >> i haven't seen him in a while. he's wonderful. >> gretchen: you would know him. >> we're old buddies, yeah. >> brian: he was great in "elf." you got 80-year-old robert wagner is here. he was shear a short time ago. he's back in. >> gretchen: he's still hot. >> he's a kid. >> brian: i know. 77-year-old carol burnett was on "glee." >> carol is son "glee" and they're all kids. i'm 89. i'm in my 90th year now.

so i'm having a ball. >> brian: you are. let's talk about what you're having a ball doing. "hot in cleveland." >> we're having a good time. we're having a lovely time. those girls are such a delight to work with. >> steve: we're going to talk about mary tyler moore showing up in a clip we saw last night in a moment. but speaking of rickey gervais, he hosted the golden globes. there he is in his golden -- >> i saw them when he was getting dressed. >> gretchen: oh, good! >> steve: were you in his house? >> he was at mine. >> steve: oh, betty. >> gretchen: can i actually ask you, do you date? >> do i date? >> gretchen: yeah. >> not you, but these guys, yeah. >> gretchen: i wasn't asking you out. i was just wondering since you, you know -- you're very active and you're working all the time. >> brian: you're famous and successful and beautiful. >> gretchen: do you have a guy in your life?

>> it's none of your business. [ laughter ] >> brian: you did it with a smile nonresponsive i -- >> steve: we want to talk about your show and the movie. >> brian: a movie and a show and a series. >> steve: she's not going anywhere. back after the break to talk about "hot in cleveland" and the movie. >> gretchen: the march of dimes making it their mission to save the lives of kids all over the country and two very special ambassadors select to do share the message and the passing of the torch is coming up as well. nf]fídn/xçyyxññw8woññó as a kid, i couldn't wait to ste on that i

what was i thinking? t i was stilskating on thin ice with my cholesterol. anyone with high cholesterol may be at increased risk of heart attack. diet and exercise weren't enough for me. i stopped kidding myself. i've been eating healthier, exercising more and now i'm also taking lipitor. if you've been kidding yourself about high cholesterol, stop.

lipitor is a cholesterol-lowerinmedication, fdapproved to reduce the risk of heart attack and soke in patients who have heart disease or risk facts for heart disease. lipit is backed by over 18 years of research. [ female announcer ] lipitor is not for everyo, including people with liver problems and wen who are nursing, pregnant, or may become pregnant. you need simple blood tests to check for liver problems. tell your doctor if you are taking other medications or if you have any muscle pain or weakness. this may be a sign of a rare but serious side effect. let's go! [ laughs ] if you have high cholesterol you may be at increased risk of heart attack and stroke. don't kid yourself. talk to your doctor about your risk and about lipitor. >> steve: good morning.

we got a fox news alert for you. you're looking live at the white house where they are waiting the arrival of china's president. he is here for high level meetings on economic and security issues. tonight president obama will host a state dinner for the president. >> gretchen: she's still america's sweetheart and a one woman -- >> who is president of china. >> gretchen: who. and she's still making jokes. bete white. >> that was letterman last night. we had a good time. he kept saying who is president. and i didn't know what to answer 'cause who is president of china? >> brian: we actually have a snippet of you on the letterman show last night, since you mentioned that. do you want to relive this moment? >> you're the boss. >> steve: okay. take a look. >> what do you like to do in your free time? >> oh, i like to do most anything, play with animals

mostly. and vodka is kind of a hobby. [ laughter ] >> steve: tell me that wasn't real vodka. >> it was not real vodka. >> steve: that's why you spit it out. >> gretchen: did you enjoy doing letterman? do you enjoy doing that show? >> i always do. i always do. he's fun. you just follow him wherever he goes. they do a preinterview before the show and we never go near the notes. we just have fun. >> steve: kind of like what we're doing right here. >> exactly. >> brian: "hot in cleveland," tell me about it. what sold you on it? >> it's such a joy with the

actresses and they are the three greatest gals to work with. it's just a joy. and we're having a great time and then i did a hallmark hall of fame, which was a switch for me 'cause it's not comedy. >> steve: "lost valentine." >> yes. >> steve: it will be sunday on cbs. that seemed official. going back to "hot in cleveland," we got a snippet we watched and tonight will be the premiere for the season. mary tyler moore. >> yes, mary and i have been close friends for all our lives. but we haven't worked together in 33 years. so that was fun. >> steve: you were behind bars. >> of course, we're jail mates. what else? >> brian: that's long overdue. is the rhythm the same with mary tyler moore? >> yes. absolutely. it was great fun. it brought back a lot of good

memoryies, but we've -- actually mary and her then husband were the first people that my husband ever introduced me to when we started going together. so that's how long we've been together. >> gretchen: let's look at a clip from your show. >> okay. >> hey, fresh meat. pipe down. [ cheers and applause ] >> what's with the big m? >> stands for murder. >> that what you're in for? >> no, it's what i've been thinking about ever since you started playing that harmonica! >> steve: that is funny. when you guys get together. are you sue ann nivens to her mary richards. >> betty and mary. and sue ann nivens was the neighborhood nympho.

they always ask allen how close is betty to the character, 'cause sue ann could do anything, she could cook anything, she could clean. phyllis knew her husband was cheating 'cause he'd come home with his clothes cleaner than when he left. [ laughter ] allen would always say, well, betty is the same character, except she can't cook. >> steve: there you are with cloris leachman. she's been on the program a couple of times. last time she was on, she licked brian's neck. >> well, that's cloris. >> gretchen: you're not going to do the same thing? >> no. >> gretchen: okay. >> not now. [ laughter ] >> gretchen: in the commercial break -- sop of the fun facts about betty, you do not own a computer. >> isn't that ridiculous? >> gretchen: will you ever or what's the aversion? >> well, my problem is i can handle -- i get a lot of mail and i can handle mail. i can put them in stacks. but if i press a button and store them, i wouldn't sleep at

night thinking, what did i store and how much do i have to look at and stuff? so i just don't have one. >> steve: you've come this far so far without it. >> maybe in a couple of years or five years maybe i'll get one. >> brian: do you know what's coming up on monday? what happened on last monday? >> no. >> brian: it was your birthday. [ laughter ] >> you get old, you forget. >> gretchen: we'd like to wish you a happy 89th birthday. >> thank you so much. >> gretchen: here comes your balloons and your flowers, right out of petty cash. >> oh, look! oh, that's wonderful. thank you, darling. i appreciate it. oh, well do you think i'm milking this birthday a little much? >> brian: i think you are. >> gretchen: we're helping you. >> that is lovely. thank you, thank you, thank you. >> gretchen: thank you for being our guest today. it's been a pleasure.

>> it's been a pleasure for me and i'm going to give you my balloons. >> gretchen: you are? okay. >> and the flowers are beautiful. thank you so much. >> brian: you got to carry them around all day. we'll look forward to seeing your movie january 30 on cbs, it premieres on sunday. >> thank you again. i must tell you, i enjoy you guys on the air all the time and it's fun to be in the real set. thank you. >> steve: great to have you. betty white. >> thank you. >> steve: are you going to leave now? >> no, i'm going to go over here. >> gretchen: oh, oh! >> no, i'm not. >> gretchen: i thought she was going to do it. coming up on the show, the march of dimes working hard to improve young lives all across america by overcoming early risks to their health. next, we're talking to two young ambassadors who know firsthand how important this organization is. >> brian: let's check in with bill heller, find out what's on his show. >> you're jealous right now, aren't you? >> brian: i absolutely am.

>> she's an absolute burst of shine. good morning to both of you. more than half the states are suing because of the health care law. can you believthat? 26 states are now lined up. dana perino, what that means for obamacare. want to cut government spending? the tea party leaders have strong ideas. we'll tell what you they think. one state found out a way out of its economic mess. wait until you hear how utah did it. see you in ten minutes with martha and me. ♪ ♪ you look like an angel ♪ look like an angel [ laughs ] ♪ walk like an angel ♪ walk like an angel ♪ talk like an angel [ male announcer ] we put it through over 5,000 quality tests... so it'll stand up to just about anything. the nissan altima. innovation that lasts. innovation for all. now get 0% apr or a $199 per month lease.

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>> gretchen: welcome back. the march of dimes mission is to improve infant's health to prevent immaturity. they also select a child whose life was saved by the organization to act as a national ambassador. this year the march of dimes chose our show to announce its

2011 national ambassador and joining us news, nicky and denzel from north carolina, the parents. along with lauren fleming, this year's march of dimes ambassador and to pass along the torch, we have my good friend, 2010 national ambassador, josh hoffman and his proud mom, melanie. good to see all five of you today. thank you for being here. >> thank you for having us. >> gretchen: josh, you've been the ambassador for the last year. what advice can you give lauren as you pass the torch? >> well, first i'd like to say being a national ambassador was one of the best times of my life. i got to help fight disease, help babies be born healthy and give back to the march of dimes, which was so cool for me because they helped save my life. i know lauren will do a great job this year and my advice to her is to have fun because it goes by really fast. >> gretchen: time does go by way too fast. melanie, you've been the mom as

the ambassador for this whole year. i know you had such a fantastic time doing that. what advice would you give? >> it was just an honor and a privilege for my husband and myself and josh and his little brother to be the 2010 national ambassador family, to be a face for the mission of the march of dimes. to be able to meet volunteers, amazing volunteers like you, gretchen, and to be able to help promote awareness about premature birth and help all moms have healthy pregnancies and healthy babies. just to be able to give back is such a wonderful gift for us and we know lauren, we're so excited for her. we know she'll do a fabulous job and her beautiful family, they're going to do a wonderful job. >> gretchen: i know you were associated with the march of dimes for years before you ever ejs÷

>> that's why we have this beautiful six-year-old here taupe. >> gretchen: what do you think about the year ahead? >> i'm really excited about it. i think the interesting thing about this entire story is that we volunteer for the march of dimes for years. for me, i can remember back as far as elementary volunteering and then now to be on the other side of the table receiving some of those services and benefits from the march of dimes and the research they provided, it really comes full circle. >> gretchen: i got to get to lauren because you're the new ambassador. the torch was just passed. what do you think about the year coming up as the ambassador? are you looking forward to it? yeah? i guess she is. definitely. we want to mention that march for babies walk takes place all across the country april 30 and may 1 for the most part. stick around. more "fox & friends" just two minutes away.

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